Seeing the Stars and Sky -- Short Story, Part 1
by sgpcat17
Summary: Jack is just a kid like anyone else, going on 14. He's not very religious, and neither is his best friend, Jamie. One day, out of the blue while going to school, the school bus Jack takes to school tips over. Jack is the only survivor. What happens after the crash though? Wait until part 2 to find out!


**Seeing the Stars and Sky**

**Short Story - Part 1**

"Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep…"

The insisting call of Jack's alarm clock woke him with a start. With a lazy hand, he reached over and slapped the snooze button on the alarm, temporarily shutting it off. Jack then proceeded to roll over and shove a pillow over his head.

A few minutes later, the alarm went off again, and this time Jack groaned, then threw his pillow on the floor and sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He turned the alarm off again, and reset it. He swung his feet down onto the floor and stood up. Jack walked over to his door and fumbled with the handle, then opened the door out into the hallway, dark and foreboding.

He flipped the light switch that supposedly turned on the hallway light before remembering that the light bulb needed to be replaced, then turned down the hall to a set of stairs that led up to the main level. Jack's room was in the basement.

Jack ascended the stairs and flipped on the light switch at the top of the stairs, the one that actually worked. The stairway's second light fixture flickered on, and both the stairs and the kitchen became bathed in a soft yellow glow.

Jack trudged over to the fridge, still groggy, and grabbed the milk, then reached for the box of Grape Nuts located in the cabinet on his left. He also found a bowl, but had to search hard to find a spoon. He finally found one located in the very back of the utensil drawer. The dishes needed to be cleaned again. Nearly all of the eating utensils were piled up in the sink.

Jack poured himself a bowl of Grape Nuts and started to chow down on his breakfast. Moments later, his mother walked into the kitchen through the sliding glass door that connected the dining room to the kitchen. She was still in her pink bathrobe.

"Now, what did I tell you about eating in the kitchen?" His mother asked, annoyed.

"Don't." Jack replied quickly, embarrassed for being caught.

"Yeah, that's what I thought. Go on, get out of here. In the dining room. Now. I'll have to clean up the mess you've made. You slopped milk all over."

Jack obeyed and creeped into the dining room, quieter than a mouse. He finished his breakfast in silence, then tromped back down to his room to find his backpack. He pulled it out from under his bed, which it had gotten kicked under the day before. His bed was extremely messy from being neglected for the past few weeks.

Once Jack was back upstairs, he checked his pack to see if he had forgotten anything, and then, seeing he hadn't, slung it over his shoulder, ready to leave.

"Bye, Mom!" He called, walking towards the door.

"Bye, honey! Stay safe! I love you!" His mother replied as he shut the door. Jack had to admit, even though his mom was extremely strict, she was pretty nice at times, too.

Jack pulled the front door open and stepped outside. It truly was a beautiful day. He shut his eyes for a moment and just breathed in the cool, crisp, dry autumn air. Then the bus honked, jolting Jack out of one of his few moments of calm. Jack shuffled on down the driveway and climbed up onto the bus, which was empty, as his house was it's very first stop in the morning.

He walked to the back of the bus and plunked himself down on one of the hard leather seats, and tried to settle in for the hour long ride. Within a few minutes, the bus stopped again and Jamie, Jack's best friend, scrambled onto the bus and sat down across the aisle from Jack.

"So," Jamie said, her eyes sparkling, "Are you excited?"

"Excited about what?" Jack asked, unsure of what she was referring to.

"Duh, your birthday. It's tomorrow, you idiot."

He sat back. "Yeah. I guess it is." Jack hadn't really thought about turning 14. It just didn't really seem possible. Time had gone so quickly.

Jamie scoffed, "You guess it is. Wow, what an enthusiastic response."

"I don't know," Jack replied, "I haven't thought about it."

"Really?" Jamie asked. "I would be totally cranked up and hyper and acting like a super freak if it was me who was turning fourteen."

"You already are a super freak!" Jack laughed.

Jamie gasped, "Am not!"

"Are too!"

"I am not!"

"Yes you are, and you know it!" Jack laughed, shoving her playfully.

"OMG, I am not!" Jamie argued.

"You are!" Jack giggled, now gasping for breath, "Come on now, Jamie. You've even admitted it yourself before."

Jamie seemed taken aback.

"Haha, got ya!" Jack poked her in the arm repeatedly. When Jamie started to glare at him, though, he stopped and flashed Jamie one of his most winning smiles.

Jamie frowned and growled, "This is so not over."

Jack was about to tease her again, but just as he opened his mouth, the bus suddenly careened around a corner and screeched to a stop, then started to tilt precariously. Jack grabbed Jamie's arm and turned to see what the problem was, just as the bus rolled over on its side. A Jeep's hood smashed through the window right next to him. A girl screamed. A car's whooping siren went off. Then Jack's head hit something violently and the world faded to black.


End file.
